San Francisco, February 4: US-based software company Salesforce has reportedly laid off several employees to expand its AI-based products. The Salesforce layoffs have impacted 1,000 individuals as the company aimed for AI-based hiring in 2025. Last year, the Marc Benioff-led company said it would cut hundreds of jobs at its data management startup Own and reduce the less-required staff members.

According to reports, the Salesforce layoffs affected nearly a thousand employees, but it was unclear which divisions were affected. However, they mentioned that the employees affected by the job cuts would have an opportunity to apply to other positions within the company. With the workforce reduction decision, the company aimed to focus on AI-based products such as Agentforce, which can help it create virtual representatives. ADM Layoffs: After Rival Cargill Layoffs, Another US Agri-Business Archer Daniels-Midland To Cut Jobs Amid Low Crop Prices and Reduced Profit.

Salesforce Layoffs: Why Employees Were Terminated?

Salesforce has not issued any official statement about the layoffs and which departments were affected. However, the job cuts reduced the number of people employed from the total workforce. In January 2024, the company had slashed 700 jobs, and in July 2024, the software giant had reduced more than 300 people. According to an estimate, 10% of the Salesforce employees were affected in early 2024.

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said that the company's AI-powered solution virtual representative platform Agentforce helped secure 1,000 paid deals. The company is expected to reveal its financial details on February 26, 2025, during its quarterly earnings. Reports indicated that Salesforce layoffs showed trends in the tech industry, such as artificial intelligence being adopted for workforce-related solutions. Amazon Layoffs: E-Commerce Giant Lays Off Corporate Employees in Latest Round of Job Cuts.

In November 2024, Salesforce said that layoffs at Own startup would end on January 31. This year, many other companies have announced their plans to reduce the workforce to focus on AI development, such as Meta and Google, and others said that this year could be "intense" for artificial intelligence tech and other competitions.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 04, 2025 11:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).